Cafe con Leche

At Lola Tapas they roast their own beans...need I say more? Fantastic!

Clairvoyance

Strange. Bizarre. Clairvoyance at its best. Last night Nicole had a dream that she and I were touring Taliesin West. After waking, she happened to check facebook. I posted on her wall and she noticed that my picture was that of me sitting in a chair at the very place she dreamt. Why does this happen? This has happened to me. My sister and her friend had a falling out and remained at odds for several weeks. One night I had a dream that she and her friend had reconciled and were now friends once more. The next day I spoke with my sister and relayed this dream...she was astonished because this very event had occurred only the night before! And I can't say that this has been the only example of such extra-sensory perception. Maybe I should start a hotline?!?

Taliesin West

On a whim this past Saturday we toured Taliesin West, the former winter residence and brainchild of pioneering American architect/designer/eccentric/genius/egomaniac Frank Lloyd Wright. According to Deidre, our efficient tour guide, Mr. Wright would affix a tile (see above) with his signature to those projects not deviating from his original design. Considering this, I find the tile he attached to Taliesin West absolutely hilarious. As are several other bits of information...that he and his wife Olgivanna would host large parties for dignitaries and movie-stars, requiring all the apprentices (slaves) to prepare the food and serve. Apart from serving and studying, the apprentices were encouraged to: play a musical instrument, sing, dance, read poetry, act----all under the guise of achieving well-roundedness----but probably more likely to entertain the many guests invited to Taliesin West.

Mr. Wright was a seventy year old man when he hiked into the Arizona desert to find the perfect site for his winter residence. Taliesin West is built by means of the very place it inhabits using desert masonry, a method and term of FLW's own creation. Of course, the apprentices hauled the matter to the site and certain rocks are noted by how many cadets were needed to carry them. Originally the site was open to the air---consisting of canvas, void of glass and electricity. The encroaching power lines of the ever expanding Phoenix area angered Mr. Wright. To express his displeasure he had a part of Taliesin that used to look out over the valley walled up so that he no longer saw it. But, in a turn of sentiment not too long after, demanded that electricity be accessible before his winter arrival. When he decided to install glass in the complex he refused to move several vases even a few inches to make way for the new substance. As a result the apprentices cut the glass to the vase and part of it sticks outside and part inside.

In the short tour---ninety minutes---I was briefly acquainted with the importance of the person behind the design. I marvelled at his stubbornness, his willingness to try new things, his confidence. Often I had heard of the natural elements Mr. Wright incorporated in his designs, but i was never informed that the man himself was a force of nature. His creative flair and proliferation ceased only with his death at ninety-one. Taliesin West is a tribute to energy at any age. Whether you decide to trek out to the desert at seventy or seven...it's all in what you make of it. Though I'm sure it helps to be a genius and have a few apprentices at your disposal.

Cowboys, Cougars, and Prairie Dogs (OH MY!)

On Saturday, we took a trek into the Estrella Mountains. WHAT AN ADVENTURE!

Starting out at the trailhead. Sounds dangerous!

Getting ready to head out. "BA" stands for BAAAAAD Trail.

At the half-way point.

Unbelieveable! We thought we saw some creatures scurrying around on the desert floor, but we weren't sure until we got right up on top of them!

More of these little guys. As you can see, we must have startled the one on the left...

At the summit. I think you can see Wisconsin from here.

As we were making our way back to the car, we nearly became cougar lunch. Thankfully, the cougar had found a tastier snack!!!!!!!

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As we left the park we saw some commotion over at the rodeo arena. There were cowboys riding horses and shooting pistols at balloons. All in all, a pretty exciting morning!

Obvious Good Luck Charms

When Kendra and I move to a new city, we don't just increase its collective IQ--we also bring overwhelming success to its professional sports teams. Take a look at the season records of the teams below, and you'll see what I mean. In black are the teams' dreadful pre-A&K seasons. In red are the teams' amazing post-A&K seasons. The abrupt turnarounds are quite stunning and obviously prove that we are good luck charms. You'll note, however, that not even our superpowers were able to prod the Cleveland Browns into the postseason. Sorry Browns. We eventually got you a winning season, but we're good luck charms NOT miracle workers!

Cleveland Indians
2002: 74-88
2003: 68-94
2004: 80-82
2005: 93-69
2006: 78-84
2007: 96-66 and won Division Series against Yankees.

Cleveland Browns
2003: 5-11
2004: 4-12
2005: 6-10
2006: 4-12
2007: 10-6

Cleveland Cavaliers
2002-2003: 17-65
2003-2004: 35-47
2004-2005: 42-50
2006-2006: 50-32 and won first round of playoffs.
2006-2007: 50-32 and went to NBA finals.

Arizona Cardinals
2005: 5-11
2006: 5-11
2007: 8-8
2008: 9-7 and HEADED TO SUPERBOWL XLIII!!!

Hide and Seek

We finally decided to get out of the apartment this weekend. It's weird, but I think our bodies and minds have been trained to seek shelter in the winter months--to get inside, huddle down, and sleep until winter slips into spring. But in Phoenix the "winter" months are just arbitrary names on a calendar. December, January, February. Warm. Warmer. Hot.

Long story short, it was 80+ degrees again today and there was no way we could justify lazing around in the apartment surfing the internet and wearing our fat pants all day. We got in the car and just started driving (technically we stopped at Costco first to order a carrot cake for ANOTHER office party next week. See "fat pants" above). We eventually meandered all the way into Olde Scottsdale which was a HUGE mistake. I've heard very scary rumors of the infamous "snow birds" flocking into Phoenix during the winter to escape the frozen north. But until today I hadn't really noticed any unusual crowding or heightened chaos around town. Apparently that's because the snow birds don't flock to Phoenix, they descend on SCOTTSDALE. We sat in bumper to bumper traffic on Scottsdale Road before I decided to peel off to the west.

That's when we realized that we might not be too far from a place we had heard about a long time ago, but never tried because it was fairly far away. Dick's Hideaway. I know. Strange name but not a single bad review. With our trusty iPhones we were able to pinpoint it's location. The restaurant, however, certainly lived up to its name. It was very hidden. I thought I had passed it completely and so turned into a random parking lot to turn around and check the map. As luck would have it, I parked directly in front of the entrance without even realizing it. The restaurant itself is no more than three tables and a bar. Very small but VERY good. Kendra had a BBQ chicken pizza with gouda cheese and I had the New Mexico platter: pork tamale, chile relleno, and chicken enchilada with green chile sauce covering the whole thing. Kendra's pizza was good, but the platter took center stage. We both ate on that and took most of the pizza home.

All in all, a pretty good trip today. Kendra put together a little "Dick's Hideaway" collage. Make sure you take notice of the picture of the soup menu on the left-hand side. Sound familiar? (click the pic to make larger)

Inside Looking Out

Ahhhhh... 79 degrees. Let's just hope the scorpions don't find their way in....

Happy Birthday

How old will I be? 27? 26? We had to think a little too long about this. 27? NO...really? That would mean that I was 26? I thought I was 25. A few more advanced calculations----age when married - graduation + DOB = ?!? What a relief...not as old as we thought.

Pay Attention

In desperate need of some socks and a pullover, I made a visit to our walk-in closet. Just as I was exiting something caught my eye. A pattern embroidered on the hood of a sweatshirt I have owned for several years and never noticed. It says, "Vertigo"----the brand. A small and pleasant discovery...kind of like when you reach in a pocket of a pair of pants or purse you haven't worn in awhile and find money (even a dollar is absolutely thrilling!).

Stuck in the Past

It's getting close to midnight here and I'm finally feeling like I might be able to sleep. MIDNIGHT...which reminds me of New Year's Eve this year (last year...technically this year and last year...well you know what I mean). I was in Ohio with the fam and Adam was home all by himself in Arizona (make a sad face). We were talking to each other on the phone when the clock struck twelve AND since twelve in Ohio was still only TEN in Arizona, Adam promptly said, "Help, I'm stuck in the past." Then, of course, we were all very amused.

Not To Brag

Current Temperature: 72 degrees
Skies: Clear Blue
Sun: Shining
Month: January (WHAT?!?)

Bloodthirsty Yipping

So, if it wasn't for the fact that hyenas aren't native to this continent...I would be pretty convinced that a gaggle of them were just outside my window early this morning. Again, around 2:30AM (seems to be a common point of wakefulness over the past several days) I was awakened, this time not by a knock but by police sirens and a series of ugly, bloodthirsty yips. Adam heard them too. (whew...not entirely crazy) Anyway...it is far more likely the disturbing yelps were the cries from a pack of this guy:

Probably not as a cartoon...but I have no visual proof of this assertion.

Winter Wedding

Adorned with snowflakes and sparkly cake glitter, Laura and Bill's cake was the perfect accessory to a winter wedding. I was thrilled to snap this shot while the spotlight shaded blue. The wedding was a great success---not that I was expecting anything less. Like Katie said, "The Dunns really know how to throw a party." True, very true.

This Morning's Moon

My sleep was pretty restless this morning. Tossing and turning----waking up first at 2:30AM thinking there was a knock on the door. Listening intently to see if the sound repeated. It didn't. The moon was full and cast an eerie light this morning. I took this about 8am. Full moon = funny business?